Mr. E. Blackadder
Encyclopedia
Edmund Blackadder, Esq. is the main character in the third series
of the BBC
sitcom Blackadder
. He was played by Rowan Atkinson
.
The series was set in the reign of George III of the United Kingdom
(1760–1820). The character is in keeping with the trend of the series Blackadder is lower in rank in this series, but more intelligent (speaking French
and a little bit of Mongolian
). It appears that the Blackadder dynasty
has fallen upon hard times. The Blackadder of this period, although of noble blood, is butler to the Prince Regent
, Prince George. George has absolute, but completely misplaced trust in Blackadder, largely because he is completely unable to do even the most basic things himself. Blackadder seems to make a living from stealing and selling
the Prince's valuables (especially his socks). Indeed, George's wallet is often to be found in Blackadder's top pocket. Furthermore, he seized on the opportunity when he learned that his master believed that the rules of gambling
involved trying to be the first player to give away all of his money. Although few have mentioned it to his face, Blackadder is one of the most respected people in the land, with several guests to the prince, including the Duke of Wellington mentioning having heard that the Prince Regent is idiotic and his butler being highly respected.
Throughout the centuries since his ancestor Lord Blackadder
, the Blackadders seem to have maintained their rapier wit, and their penchant for theft, corruption, lies and insults. This Blackadder also seems slightly more ruthless than his ancestors and willing to engage in criminal behavior (such as a highway robbery
, and extortion
), being directly or indirectly responsible for the deaths of a number of innocent and less-than-innocent people. The Blackadder dynasty also seems to have maintained a close link with the Baldrick
family line. Baldrick, by this stage, has lost whatever cunning his ancestors once had, and reached a level of childlike stupidity that is familiar to most viewers.
At one point, Blackadder expresses unveiled contempt for the cultus of Lord Nelson. Mocking the Admiral's signal at the Battle of Trafalgar
, Blackadder announces that Nelson used a similar signal at the Battle of the Nile
: "England knows Lady Hamilton is a virgin. Poke my eye out and cut off my arm if I'm wrong."
On the up side of things, somewhere between the Elizabethan period and the Regency period, Blackadder does seem to have managed to shake off Lord Percy
's descendant
s. However, in his place stands the even more stupid Prince George, whom Blackadder now has to serve. The relationship between the two is a fine example of how figureheads often act as puppet
s whose strings are pulled by those behind the scenes. Although, Blackadder did sometimes have a hard time preventing those strings from becoming tangled.
As butler to the royal household, Blackadder's jobs include announcing, supervising the linen maids, opening and closing doors and cleaning up the Prince's cock-ups. Most of his other duties appear to have been delegated to Baldrick. He also receives assistance from Mrs. Miggins, who appears to do much of the baking for the palace.
Politically this Blackadder is a monarchist but his reasons for supporting the prince all relate to keeping the prince in power so he can take advantage of it. As a result, he is often required to guide George so that he appears respectable to society. This includes speech writing, election rigging, wooing potential brides and advising the Prince on patronages. This often leads Blackadder into worse trouble, including trying to re-write Dr Johnson
's dictionary
in one night, being robbed by the elusive "Shadow" and being captured by an evil revolutionary
.
Blackadder actually seems rather content to be middle class
, with "the toffs at the top, the plebs at the bottom, and me in the middle making a fat pile of cash out of both of them." He dreams of being young and wild, middle aged and rich, and old and annoying people by pretending to be deaf. Edmund is also an author
: Under the pseudonym 'Gertrude Perkins' he wrote "Edmund: A Butler's Tale," "a giant roller coaster
of a novel
in 400 sizzling chapters. A searing indictment of domestic servitude in the eighteenth century with some hot Gypsies thrown in." Johnson believes it to be the only book better than his own A Dictionary of the English Language, and it looks like Edmund is going to be rich until Baldrick
mistakenly throws the book on the fire. Other than this, he is eager to be remembered by the public, breaking the fourth wall in the process.
At the same time, Baldrick thinks that he himself would be played by "some tiny tit in a beard
" (even though this incarnation of Baldrick does not have a beard).
In the final episode, after a saga which involved Edmund and the Prince swapping coats and assuming each other's identity to protect the Prince from the vengeance of the Duke of Wellington
, Blackadder is shot at point-blank range by a cannon, but survives because of a metal cigarillo
case that the Duke had given him. In the interim, George is shot dead by the Duke, who believes him to be a 'tiresome butler.' Blackadder, having conversely earned the Duke's respect and thus an amicable settling of the Prince's accounts, leaps on the opportunity to claim that he is Prince George, and supposedly goes on to become George IV of the United Kingdom
. This Blackadder is one of three members of the family who definitely does not die at the end of the adventures (the others being Ebenezer Blackadder
and the future Edmund III). He is the second Blackadder to rise to the throne (after his ancestor Prince Edmund who held the throne for only 30 seconds at the end of series one, The Black Adder), reigning from 1820–1830, though if he is the historic George IV then he died without legitimate issue, preventing the Blackadder line from retaining the throne after his death, (though his descendant Edmund III would regain the throne by 1999 through use of time travel). This Blackadder delivers perhaps one of his most famous lines in this episode, that effectively sums up his character:
Blackadder the Third
Blackadder the Third is the third series of the BBC situation comedy Blackadder, written by Richard Curtis and Ben Elton, which aired from 17 September to 22 October 1987....
of the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
sitcom Blackadder
Blackadder
Blackadder is the name that encompassed four series of a BBC1 historical sitcom, along with several one-off instalments. All television programme episodes starred Rowan Atkinson as anti-hero Edmund Blackadder and Tony Robinson as Blackadder's dogsbody, Baldrick...
. He was played by Rowan Atkinson
Rowan Atkinson
Rowan Sebastian Atkinson is a British actor, comedian, and screenwriter. He is most famous for his work on the satirical sketch comedy show Not The Nine O'Clock News, and the sitcoms Blackadder, Mr. Bean and The Thin Blue Line...
.
The series was set in the reign of George III of the United Kingdom
George III of the United Kingdom
George III was King of Great Britain and King of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of these two countries on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland until his death...
(1760–1820). The character is in keeping with the trend of the series Blackadder is lower in rank in this series, but more intelligent (speaking French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
and a little bit of Mongolian
Mongolian language
The Mongolian language is the official language of Mongolia and the best-known member of the Mongolic language family. The number of speakers across all its dialects may be 5.2 million, including the vast majority of the residents of Mongolia and many of the Mongolian residents of the Inner...
). It appears that the Blackadder dynasty
Dynasty
A dynasty is a sequence of rulers considered members of the same family. Historians traditionally consider many sovereign states' history within a framework of successive dynasties, e.g., China, Ancient Egypt and the Persian Empire...
has fallen upon hard times. The Blackadder of this period, although of noble blood, is butler to the Prince Regent
Prince Regent
A prince regent is a prince who rules a monarchy as regent instead of a monarch, e.g., due to the Sovereign's incapacity or absence ....
, Prince George. George has absolute, but completely misplaced trust in Blackadder, largely because he is completely unable to do even the most basic things himself. Blackadder seems to make a living from stealing and selling
Fence (criminal)
A fence is an individual who knowingly buys stolen property for later resale, sometimes in a legitimate market. The fence thus acts as a middleman between thieves and the eventual buyers of stolen goods who may or may not be aware that the goods are stolen. As a verb, the word describes the...
the Prince's valuables (especially his socks). Indeed, George's wallet is often to be found in Blackadder's top pocket. Furthermore, he seized on the opportunity when he learned that his master believed that the rules of gambling
Gambling
Gambling is the wagering of money or something of material value on an event with an uncertain outcome with the primary intent of winning additional money and/or material goods...
involved trying to be the first player to give away all of his money. Although few have mentioned it to his face, Blackadder is one of the most respected people in the land, with several guests to the prince, including the Duke of Wellington mentioning having heard that the Prince Regent is idiotic and his butler being highly respected.
Throughout the centuries since his ancestor Lord Blackadder
Lord Blackadder
Edmund Blackadder, Lord Blackadder is the main character in the second series of the popular BBC sitcom Blackadder. He is played by Rowan Atkinson.The second series is set in Elizabethan England, and Edmund is a courtier to Queen Elizabeth I...
, the Blackadders seem to have maintained their rapier wit, and their penchant for theft, corruption, lies and insults. This Blackadder also seems slightly more ruthless than his ancestors and willing to engage in criminal behavior (such as a highway robbery
Highwayman
A highwayman was a thief and brigand who preyed on travellers. This type of outlaw, usually, travelled and robbed by horse, as compared to a footpad who traveled and robbed on foot. Mounted robbers were widely considered to be socially superior to footpads...
, and extortion
Extortion
Extortion is a criminal offence which occurs when a person unlawfully obtains either money, property or services from a person, entity, or institution, through coercion. Refraining from doing harm is sometimes euphemistically called protection. Extortion is commonly practiced by organized crime...
), being directly or indirectly responsible for the deaths of a number of innocent and less-than-innocent people. The Blackadder dynasty also seems to have maintained a close link with the Baldrick
Baldrick
Baldrick is the name of several fictional characters featured in the long-running BBC historic comedy television series Blackadder. Each one serves as Edmund Blackadder's servant and sidekick and acts as a foil to the lead character...
family line. Baldrick, by this stage, has lost whatever cunning his ancestors once had, and reached a level of childlike stupidity that is familiar to most viewers.
At one point, Blackadder expresses unveiled contempt for the cultus of Lord Nelson. Mocking the Admiral's signal at the Battle of Trafalgar
England expects that every man will do his duty
"England expects that every man will do his duty" was a signal sent by Admiral Horatio Nelson, 1st Viscount Nelson from his flagship HMS Victory as the Battle of Trafalgar was about to commence on 21 October 1805. Trafalgar was the decisive naval engagement of the Napoleonic Wars...
, Blackadder announces that Nelson used a similar signal at the Battle of the Nile
Battle of the Nile
The Battle of the Nile was a major naval battle fought between British and French fleets at Aboukir Bay on the Mediterranean coast of Egypt from 1–3 August 1798...
: "England knows Lady Hamilton is a virgin. Poke my eye out and cut off my arm if I'm wrong."
On the up side of things, somewhere between the Elizabethan period and the Regency period, Blackadder does seem to have managed to shake off Lord Percy
Lord Percy Percy
Lord Percy Percy is the name given to a pair of related fictional characters, played by Tim McInnerny, in the first two series of the popular British sitcom Blackadder. The Lord Percy of Blackadder II is the descendant of that seen in The Black Adder...
's descendant
Kinship
Kinship is a relationship between any entities that share a genealogical origin, through either biological, cultural, or historical descent. And descent groups, lineages, etc. are treated in their own subsections....
s. However, in his place stands the even more stupid Prince George, whom Blackadder now has to serve. The relationship between the two is a fine example of how figureheads often act as puppet
Puppet
A puppet is an inanimate object or representational figure animated or manipulated by an entertainer, who is called a puppeteer. It is used in puppetry, a play or a presentation that is a very ancient form of theatre....
s whose strings are pulled by those behind the scenes. Although, Blackadder did sometimes have a hard time preventing those strings from becoming tangled.
As butler to the royal household, Blackadder's jobs include announcing, supervising the linen maids, opening and closing doors and cleaning up the Prince's cock-ups. Most of his other duties appear to have been delegated to Baldrick. He also receives assistance from Mrs. Miggins, who appears to do much of the baking for the palace.
Politically this Blackadder is a monarchist but his reasons for supporting the prince all relate to keeping the prince in power so he can take advantage of it. As a result, he is often required to guide George so that he appears respectable to society. This includes speech writing, election rigging, wooing potential brides and advising the Prince on patronages. This often leads Blackadder into worse trouble, including trying to re-write Dr Johnson
Samuel Johnson
Samuel Johnson , often referred to as Dr. Johnson, was an English author who made lasting contributions to English literature as a poet, essayist, moralist, literary critic, biographer, editor and lexicographer...
's dictionary
A Dictionary of the English Language
Published on 15 April 1755 and written by Samuel Johnson, A Dictionary of the English Language, sometimes published as Johnson's Dictionary, is among the most influential dictionaries in the history of the English language....
in one night, being robbed by the elusive "Shadow" and being captured by an evil revolutionary
French Revolution
The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
.
Blackadder actually seems rather content to be middle class
Middle class
The middle class is any class of people in the middle of a societal hierarchy. In Weberian socio-economic terms, the middle class is the broad group of people in contemporary society who fall socio-economically between the working class and upper class....
, with "the toffs at the top, the plebs at the bottom, and me in the middle making a fat pile of cash out of both of them." He dreams of being young and wild, middle aged and rich, and old and annoying people by pretending to be deaf. Edmund is also an author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
: Under the pseudonym 'Gertrude Perkins' he wrote "Edmund: A Butler's Tale," "a giant roller coaster
Roller coaster
The roller coaster is a popular amusement ride developed for amusement parks and modern theme parks. LaMarcus Adna Thompson patented the first coasters on January 20, 1885...
of a novel
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
in 400 sizzling chapters. A searing indictment of domestic servitude in the eighteenth century with some hot Gypsies thrown in." Johnson believes it to be the only book better than his own A Dictionary of the English Language, and it looks like Edmund is going to be rich until Baldrick
Baldrick
Baldrick is the name of several fictional characters featured in the long-running BBC historic comedy television series Blackadder. Each one serves as Edmund Blackadder's servant and sidekick and acts as a foil to the lead character...
mistakenly throws the book on the fire. Other than this, he is eager to be remembered by the public, breaking the fourth wall in the process.
At the same time, Baldrick thinks that he himself would be played by "some tiny tit in a beard
Tony Robinson
Tony Robinson is an English actor, comedian, author, broadcaster and political campaigner. He is best known for playing Baldrick in the BBC television series Blackadder, and for hosting Channel 4 programmes such as Time Team and The Worst Jobs in History. Robinson is a member of the Labour Party...
" (even though this incarnation of Baldrick does not have a beard).
In the final episode, after a saga which involved Edmund and the Prince swapping coats and assuming each other's identity to protect the Prince from the vengeance of the Duke of Wellington
Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington
Field Marshal Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, KG, GCB, GCH, PC, FRS , was an Irish-born British soldier and statesman, and one of the leading military and political figures of the 19th century...
, Blackadder is shot at point-blank range by a cannon, but survives because of a metal cigarillo
Cigarillo
A cigarillo is a short, narrow cigar. Unlike cigarettes, cigarillos are wrapped not in paper but in whole-leaf tobacco. Cigarillos can be found for purchase alone or in packs, and are often made without filters...
case that the Duke had given him. In the interim, George is shot dead by the Duke, who believes him to be a 'tiresome butler.' Blackadder, having conversely earned the Duke's respect and thus an amicable settling of the Prince's accounts, leaps on the opportunity to claim that he is Prince George, and supposedly goes on to become George IV of the United Kingdom
George IV of the United Kingdom
George IV was the King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and also of Hanover from the death of his father, George III, on 29 January 1820 until his own death ten years later...
. This Blackadder is one of three members of the family who definitely does not die at the end of the adventures (the others being Ebenezer Blackadder
Ebenezer Blackadder
Ebenezer Blackadder is one of the many Blackadder descendants from the BBC sitcom of the name. Unlike his ancestors, however, he is the only member of the Blackadder family whose name is not Edmund to feature in the television shows.-Overview:...
and the future Edmund III). He is the second Blackadder to rise to the throne (after his ancestor Prince Edmund who held the throne for only 30 seconds at the end of series one, The Black Adder), reigning from 1820–1830, though if he is the historic George IV then he died without legitimate issue, preventing the Blackadder line from retaining the throne after his death, (though his descendant Edmund III would regain the throne by 1999 through use of time travel). This Blackadder delivers perhaps one of his most famous lines in this episode, that effectively sums up his character: